Minnesota's Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) has classified all its data related to the Enbridge Line 3 pipeline as secret "security information."
This includes all info the MN Fusion Center has collected surveilling people who oppose Line 3.
unicornriot.ninja/2021/line-3-fu…
BCA is mostly known for investigating crime scenes & police shootings, but also administers the Minnesota Fusion Center, formerly known as the Minnesota Joint Analysis Center (MnJAC).
They regularly exchange data w/ “Critical Infrastructure and Key Resource” (CIKR) corporations.
A January 16, 2019 memo signed by MN Department of Safety (DPS) Commissioner John Harrington classifies virtually all BCA fusion center data as "security information" to be hidden from the public and the media. (DPS is BCA's parent agency).
PDF: unicornriot.ninja/wp-content/upl…
A Dec 2020 memo by Harrington further classifies secret all BCA data re: Line 3 "security operations."
Public view of BCA Line 3 info allegedly creates risk of "criminal or terrorist activity" but data is shared w "partners" like pipeline corp. Enbridge.
unicornriot.ninja/wp-content/upl…
These DPS/BCA security declaration memos were provided to Unicorn Riot as part of a denial of requests filed under the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act for BCA documents related to #Line3.
Terrorism is often invoked to shield fusion center activities from the scrutiny of the public & media.
However, a Senate investigation found that over a decade, fusion centers had no impact on terrorism and are generally unreliable for intelligence:
foreignpolicy.com/2012/10/03/sen…
DPS Commissioner Harrington's security designation of BCA's Line 3 info also classifies as secret any “data regarding deployment or utilization of BCA personnel or resources in support of Line 3 Replacement Project-related security operations” as secret “security information.”
“Deployment or utilization of BCA personnel" includes BCA presence at water protectors' blockades of Line 3 pipeline work sites, in at least one instance we know of.
Seen at the June 7 blockade of Enbridge's Two Inlets Pump Station, this BCA agent declined to identify himself.
BCA Line 3 data is secret “until the completion of...Line 3... or the cessation of related security operations, whichever is sooner"
We asked BCA if Line 3 records would stay classified indefinitely if pipeline "security" ops continue after construction ends. They didn't reply.
BCA also didn't reply to our Q about whether or not BCA has received any Enbridge money from the Line 3 escrow account.
In an apparent conflict of interest, Minnesota cops policing #StopLine3 protests have received over $1.6M in oil company money so far: healingmnstories.wordpress.com/2021/08/03/mn-…
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